Max's Kansas City, located at 213 Park Avenue in Lower Manhattan, was one of the most famous rock clubs in America. It was established in 1965 Mickey Ruskin, a Cornell Law School graduate who went on to become a successful restauranteur.

As for Max's, it quickly became a hangout for alternative, underground, and avant gard artists, poets, and musicians. It was also a favorite hangout of Andy Warhol and his entourage, who dominated the back room. The Velvet Underground played there regularly, including their last shows with Lou Reed before he quit the band, in the summer of 1970. It was also a home base for the glam rock scene of the 1970s, which included Marc Bolan, David Bowie, Iggy Pop, Lou Reed post-Velvet Underground, Alice Cooper, and the New York Dolls. The club closed in 1981.